PM Confirms RECONDEV Board Will Be Replaced

Prime Minister has confirmed that the Reconstruction and Development Corporation, better known as RECONDEV, will soon have a new Board of Directors, signaling another major governance change as the Government continues responding to concerns surrounding entities linked to the Mira family. The future of RECONDEV has been the subject of debate for some time. Just last August there were renewed calls from the Belmopan City Council for the corporation to be placed under municipal control.  It doesn’t seem to be an idea that the government is entertaining as Prime Minister Briceño has made it clear that the current board will be replaced.  For context, here is how the PM viewed a possible amalgamation of Recondev and Belmopan City Council.

John Briceño, Prime Minister of Belize: “RECONDEV when you look at it once you get into the nitty gritty of the actual workings it’s something where both the city council and the area rep are intimately integrated into the works of what RECONDEV does. So I think so far we’re probably going to keep it that way. If we could come up with something better I’m sure we’re prepared to take a look at it.”

Reporter: Well the mayor is saying that he would prefer it to be amalgamated. The city council take on the roles and responsibilities for RECONDEV.

John Briceño, Prime Minister of Belize: “I met with the mayor and along with the area rep and that was not, we spoke of some issues with RECONDEV but he did not bring that to my attention but I mean its not something that I would dismiss. But once we can know how it can work properly because sometimes our municipalities do not operate the way they need to be able to operate and it’s important that we have these check and balances to ensure that they’re operating properly.”

For several years now, Recondev has been chaired by Brian Mira, the brother of Minister Oscar Mira.  RECONDEV was established to oversee the planning and development of the capital, to exercise authority over land management, infrastructure planning and building approvals, despite the existence of an elected City Council. While the Prime Minister has now confirmed that a new RECONDEV Board will be installed, the Government has yet to indicate whether any broader reforms to the corporation’s mandate are also under consideration.